wondering
You wrote <<Without oil both countries would fall back into oblivion. Nations of sheep and camel herders living in a middle age society. And that would be the end of their story. Who in the West would really care about this dry arid land? >>
Perhaps you should look at the intrigues around the Suez crisis - the motivations were not about oil and not only about the Suez canal, the crushing of Syria was in the arguments too. Those middle eastern nations have never been given a chance, their best leaders murdered (start with Nasser for example) or otherwise dealt with (eg Mossadegh of Iran) - whatever the economic arguments (oil, canal, whatever) the greatest problem for any budding sovereign nation state in the region is that if they become strong and prosperous they become a potential threat to Israel, so they are nipped in the bud - it has to be said.